611  
FXUS10 KWNH 311851  
PMDHMD  
 
MODEL DIAGNOSTIC DISCUSSION  
NWS WEATHER PREDICTION CENTER COLLEGE PARK MD  
151 PM EST TUE DEC 31 2019  
 
VALID DEC 31/1200 UTC THRU JAN 04/0000 UTC  
 
...SEE NOUS42 KWNO (ADMNFD) FOR THE STATUS OF THE UPPER AIR  
INGEST...  
 
12Z MODEL EVALUATION WITH FINAL PREFERENCES/CONFIDENCE  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
   
..LOW DEPARTING FROM NEW ENGLAND TODAY
 
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
PREFERENCE: GENERAL MODEL BLEND  
CONFIDENCE: ABOVE AVERAGE  
 
THE MODELS SHOW SIMILARLY WITH THIS SYSTEM.  
 
   
..CLOSED LOW ENTERING MEXICO AND WEAKENING WEDNESDAY NIGHT
 
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
PREFERENCE: 12Z GFS/UKMET/CMC BLEND  
CONFIDENCE: AVERAGE  
 
TIMING DIFFERENCES ARE STILL APPARENT AS A CLOSED LOW ENTERS  
MEXICO ON WEDNESDAY, WITH THE 12Z NAM AND 12Z ECMWF SLOWEST WHILE  
THE 12Z GFS AND 00Z ECMWF ARE SLIGHTLY FASTER. TRENDS IN THE  
ENSEMBLE SPAGHETTI PLOTS OF 500 MB HEIGHTS SHOW A SUDDEN SLOWING  
VALID 00Z/04 AFTER WHAT HAD BEEN FAIRLY CONSISTENT TIMING FROM  
CYCLE TO CYCLE. THE 12Z ECMWF/UKMET/CMC ARE CONSISTENT WITH THE  
00Z/31 ENSEMBLE CYCLE TREND TO BE SLOWER, WHICH WARRANTS A SHIFT  
TOWARD THAT TREND. A NUDGE SLOWER THAN THE PRELIMINARY PREFERENCE  
IS RECOMMENDED, WHICH CONSTITUTES A BLEND OF THE FASTER 12Z GFS  
AND SLOWER 12Z UKMET/CMC.  
 
...ATMOSPHERIC RIVER INTO PAC NW TODAY AND AMPLIFYING LONGWAVE  
TROUGH ACROSS THE CENTRAL U.S. THURSDAY EVENING...  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
PREFERENCE: 12Z GFS/UKMET/CMC BLEND  
CONFIDENCE: SLIGHTLY BELOW AVERAGE  
 
A LONGWAVE TROUGH DEVELOPS OVER THE GREAT PLAINS THURSDAY INTO  
FRIDAY WITH MODEL DIFFERENCES WITH THE EVOLUTION OF SHORTWAVES  
WITHIN. THE 12Z NAM STANDS OUT THE GREATEST WITH A MORE POSITIVE  
TILT TO THE SOUTHERN PORTION OF THE MID-LEVEL TROUGH AXIS BY  
FRIDAY EVENING. A SLOWER TREND IN THE 12Z ECMWF IS A MOVE TOWARD  
THE 12Z NAM BUT LESS EXTREME. MEANWHILE THE 12Z UKMET/CMC ALSO  
TRENDED A BIT SLOWER/DEEPER WITH THE LONGWAVE TROUGH MAKING THE  
12Z GFS STAND OUT FROM THE DETERMINISTIC GUIDANCE. REGARDING AN  
850 MB LOW WHICH IS EXPECTED TO TRACK FROM THE SOUTHERN PLAINS  
INTO THE MIDWEST, SOMEWHERE BETWEEN THE 12Z GFS, 12Z CMC AND 12Z  
UKMET IS PREFERRED WHICH PLACES A SURFACE LOW ALONG THE IN/OH  
BORDER AT 00Z/04.  
 
...SHORTWAVE TROUGH AND SURFACE LOW APPROACHING PACIFIC NORTHWEST  
FRIDAY/SATURDAY...  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
PREFERENCE: NEAR THE 12Z NAM  
CONFIDENCE: SLIGHTLY BELOW AVERAGE  
 
THE ENSEMBLES SHOW A FAIR DEGREE OF SPREAD WITH THE TIMING OF THE  
NEXT SHORTWAVE TO NEAR THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST BY THE WEEKEND.  
UPSTREAM FLOW BECOMES ZONAL OVER THE CENTRAL PACIFIC WHICH WOULD  
IMPLY A FASTER PROGRESSION DOWNSTREAM INTO THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST.  
INDEED, TRENDS HAVE BEEN FASTER IN THE ENSEMBLE SPAGHETTI HEIGHT  
PLOTS OVER THEIR PAST 4 00Z/12Z CYCLES AND IN THE 12Z UKMET/CMC  
WITH A SIMILAR 12Z ECMWF TO ITS 00Z CYCLE. HOWEVER, CAUTION IS  
ADVISED WITH THE FASTEST AND OFTEN BIASED GFS WHICH IS OUT AHEAD  
OF THE GEFS/ECMWF/CMC ENSEMBLE MEMBERS. THE 12Z NAM APPEARS TO BE  
A BETTER FIT WHICH IS TOWARD THE FASTER SIDE OF THE DETERMINISTIC  
GUIDANCE BUT NOT AS SLOW AS THE 12Z ECMWF/UKMET.  
 
MODEL TRENDS AT WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/HTML/MODEL2.HTML  
500 MB FORECASTS AT WWW.WPC.NCEP.NOAA.GOV/H5PREF/H5PREF.SHTML  
 
OTTO  
 

 
 
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